Peter Obi, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has taken exception to President Bola Tinubu accepting a national honour in Saint Lucia when his own country is in deep crisis.
The Presidency had announced that the Caribbean country conferred its highest national honour on Tinubu.
Reacting in a statement on X, Obi, regretted that “the Presidency basks in the euphoria of titles” while Nigerians “are being killed at home.
“A nation in pain cannot afford a leadership in denial. At a time when blood is being spilt on our soil, when children are orphaned and communities erased overnight, with families separated at IDPs, our children are not in school, and teachers are not paid and basic hospitals are not functional, our leadership must be present,” he stated.
He noted that a president of a non functioning country should not be engaging in jamboree abroad.
“A nation where children cannot go to school because some of the teachers have not been paid for almost three years, similar to what I complained about lecturers a few weeks ago. This is not a functioning nation,” he said.
“When I said that the President embarking on an 8-day state visit to St. Lucia at this critical time was inappropriate and unacceptable, it was not a lack of respect for the country of St. Lucia; rather, it was about the timing and duration for a President whose nation is in turmoil.
“Timing is everything, and right now, at this time, Nigeria is bleeding. But the handlers of the President defended the trip, citing cultural ties and economic gains and said he would also proceed from there to the BRICS summit, and this is the reason for the 8-day trip. But at this critical time, when our people die daily and our schools and hospitals are not functioning, we should focus on fixing our country,” Obi wrote.
The ex-governor of Anambra argued added that Tinubu’s trip to Saint Lucia is ill-timed, saying leaders must learn to prioritise domestic challenges.
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